1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to electronics, and, in particular, to the manufacture and handling of electronic devices, such as optoelectronic and microelectronic sub-assemblies.
2. Description of the Related Art
During the manufacture of certain electronic devices, such as optoelectronic and microelectronic sub-assemblies, trays are used to hold the devices for transport between different stages of manufacturing and testing and for access by machinery that automatically performs particular operations on the devices.
FIG. 1 shows an exploded view of a conventional clamped tray-and-lid assembly 100, used to hold up to 50 optical laser sub-assemblies, a particular type of optoelectronic device. Assembly 100 consists of tray 102, lid 104, and clamp 106. As shown in FIG. 1, tray 102 has a 5.times.10 array of bins 108, each of which can receive a single device. When the devices are carried from one stage to another during the manufacturing process, lid 104 is placed over tray 102 to keep the devices in place within their individual bins. In order to secure lid 104 onto tray 102, clamp 106 slides over the tray-and-lid assembly formed by tray 102 and lid 104 so that the devices can be safely transported and/or stored. Even after manufacturing of the devices is complete, the devices are transported within clamped tray-and-lid assembly 100 to the next stage in the fabrication process, e.g., mounting each optical laser sub-assembly onto a substrate and/or configuration with other components to form individual optoelectronic packages.
In one embodiment, the lengths and widths of tray 102 and lid 104 are each about 2 inches, and the length and width of each device are each less than 0.2 inches. Unless lid 104 is positioned and oriented accurately over tray 102, some of the devices held by tray 102, especially those lying near the edges of the array, may get damaged when a technician places lid 104 onto tray 102. It is not uncommon for a set of devices to go through the entire manufacturing process with all of the devices in a tray having been tested and qualified as acceptable for a particular application, only to have some of the devices damaged when a technician places a lid over the tray. Such damage might be discovered only after the devices are delivered for electronic packaging, perhaps by a customer, when the lid is removed revealing for the first time the existence of damaged devices.